Vedic Index of Names and Subjects v1.c3.s21.683

v1.c3.s21.683

Pastyā (fem. pl.) is a word occurring in several passages of the Rigveda.¹ Roth² ascribes to it the meaning of ‘house’ or ‘dwelling,’ in the wide sense of the term, as well as that of the ‘family’ living in the house; and this view is accepted by Zimmer.³ On the other hand, Pischel⁴ finds in two of the passages⁵ usually referred to Pastyā the neuter Pastya, which appears in Pastya-sad and in Pastyā-vant (where the length of the second syllable is not primitive), and which is certainly found in the Rigveda⁶ in the metaphorical sense of ‘dwelling,’ ascribed to it in the Naighaṇṭuka.⁷ In the other passages⁸ he thinks the word means ‘rivers’ or ‘waters’; in particular, where Soma in the middle of the Pastyās⁹ is spoken of, he sees a reference to Kurukṣetra, with its several rivers,¹⁰ Āpayā, Dṛṣadvatī, and Sarasvatī (cf. 2. Pastyāvant). In some passages¹¹ he sees in Pastyā the proper name of a stream, just as Sindhu primarily means ‘river,’ then the ‘Indus.’